The Untold Fantasy
by Omega Devin
Summary: Set in an AU. The aligning of the Hearts of Heaven is at hand, as well as Queen Mystique's rise to power. But to do so, she needs the Children of the Stars, each one different and each with a special power... discontined
1. The Beginning

Author's note: I own nothing, never have, never do, never will ****

Author's note: I own nothing, never have, never do, never will. 

This is an alternate universe fic, as well as my second X-men Evolution fic. Even though it is an AU fic, it will be doing my best to keeping all of the character's original personality as best as I can, so if something gets out of place, don't kill me. I'm not perfect. So, with that in mind, enjoy the story. Any reviews/feedback would be greatly appreciated!

PS: Also thankies to Berzerker Prime, who helped me with the story line! Love ya lots, babes! ^.~

The Untold Fantasy

Written by Kyheena

****

Chapter One: The Beginning

"It is time." The cold, blade-sharp voice echoed in the vastness of the near-empty chamber. "Eighteen years after the first has been born. The Hearts have began to make their celestial journey." The only other people in the throne room except for herself was Queen Mystique's two best trained assassins, Wolverine and Sabertooth, both bowed low to the ground before the huge, jewel encrusted throne. The jewels were a mask though to hide the true form of the throne. At a distance, it looked beautiful, really, glistening in a thousand different colors like a captured rainbow, but the closer you got to it the more you could see its crudeness, like cruelty embodied. It was a twisted black thing, looking like a mass of entangled vines that reached out on all sides like claws and talons, reaching, searching, deadly. Much like the woman that sat upon the cushioned seats.

All in all, Queen Mystique was a very beautiful woman until the coldness of her features and very heart and soul brushed against you, making you feel as if the body had been plunged into freezing water. Mystique had once been a very beautiful woman; she still was, in a way, if you could set aside the fact that she had blue skin, naturally. The cool shade of blue, almost looking as if it could never possibly hold a scrap of warmth, was a striking contract against her hair, which was bright red, a shade that was not usually seen on a person. If she could be considered a person anymore. And her eyes…her pale eyes, almost colorless irises, could be colder than ice if she ever felt as if she was being disobeyed. And the first rule to being ruled under Mystique's hand was that it was very, very stupid to question the Queen's word.

"Do you know what that means?" Each word had a dangerous edge. And, to her liking, both of her assassins remained silent, heads bowed to the marble floor which was so dark it seemed to absorb the light of the oil lanterns that lit the chamber. Mystique stood up and swept over to the nearest window. "It means that their powers will show themselves, and soon." She peered out the tall narrow window, through the carefully cleaned and polished glass, to the courtyard just outside and to the sky beyond. It was just twilight, the sky stained in different hues of purples and deep burgundy, and the stars were already beginning to show themselves. There was no moon tonight, but Mystique already knew this.

In the distance and from where she could see from where she stood, she could easily pick out the one blood-red, pulsing star amongst the other silver twinkling ones. She knew also that there was another one to be rising soon, in the opposite direction. Two of the Hearts of Heaven rising on the same night, and soon to be more. "Harailt." The Queen breathed to the red star. "And Adhamh's behind it. The others will rise too, perhaps in the next few days, but there's no doubt that the Children will begin to discover their…unique abilities as soon as tonight. Wolverine, Sabertooth, do you realize that this event has not been seen in over three thousand years?"

"What does my Queen plan to do?" Came Sabertooth's deep, rumbling growl of a voice.

The Queen remained silent for a moment before answering, possibly for dramatic effect rather than because she did not know the answer to the question. "What else is there to do besides to start gathering them?"

Wolverine looked up at the Queen. Had he not been one of her best warriors, merely a regular soldier instead, she would have thrown him against the wall and held him there until she received a proper apology. "Now?" He asked, he voice thick with caution and carrying an air of one stepping through a pit of sleeping adders. "Your majesty, you said yourself that their powers will be weak and make it hard to track down."

"Weak yes." The Queen agreed. "Hard to track, maybe. Impossible? Definitely not. The powers are faint, but they are still there, my dear Wolverine. And they grow quickly, every day as the Hearts rise higher into the skies. With my powers, I can catch their scent within a matter of days, no matter where ever they are. And I am aware that the Full Circle will not be completed for another number of months, perhaps not even for a full year. Perhaps longer. But can you tell me _why_ I want them _now_?" Her pale eyes swept back to the two big men, and the temperature of the chamber seemed to drop another few degrees.

Sabertooth answered first. "Because Xavier will be on the scent as well."

A wicked grin broke on Mystique's beautiful yet cruel face and she made a sound that suggested that she was pleased with his answer. It was also a sound of disgust. "Yes. _Xavier._" The name came out as a bitter spat. "He, too, will be looking for the Children too as of tonight. As much as I hate to admit it, the man is not stupid. That is why we will begin our search before he does."

"Tonight, my Queen?" Wolverine's voice was still cautious but now held the slight hint of disapproval. It was his own blind luck that kept the Queen from noticing. She was too preoccupied with her own thoughts.

"No, Wolverine." Her voice became soft, sending a shiver down his spine. "Not tonight. Now." She turned away from the window and crossed the length of the throne room in long strides, her dress making hardly a ripple as she moved with more grace than a roomful of dancers placed together, giving her the illusion of floating. When she reached the heavy tall doors they opened at her mere touch, making hardly a sound as they swung on huge hinges. She glanced over her shoulder once and with a wave of her gloved hand, bade for her assassins to join her. They rose from their kneeling position in the first time in what felt to be hours and followed their Queen out of the throne room.

No amount of lamps could banish the darkness from the halls of the palace, but that was simply how it was; dark. Perhaps it was just the way it was built. Or perhaps it was because that it was Mystique that walked through its halls daily. Right now the halls were empty and their steps echoed loudly off the walls, creating a very unpleasant and uncomfortable atmosphere. Or maybe it was Wolverine that felt it; Sabertooth did not seemed to be phased. Yet, it took a lot to shake the bigger man. Still, Wolverine had been in the service of the Queen for nearly twenty-five years, and he still was not used to being in her presence for very long at one time. It made him feel as if he was coming undone from the inside.

The halls twisted and turned, branching off into all different directions, making it so that anyone who had not lived in the palace for as long as he had to become lost quite easily. Actually, Wolverine was convinced that if he had to make this trip on his own, he would still get lost. They walked further, walking down and in endless circles as the air around them turned colder, more chilled. In the winter time, he was able to see his breath before when they went down this way. After what seemed like hours of walking, they finally reached the doors.

The image on the doors were always haunting to the assassin. They were made entirely out of dark wood that probably weighed a couple tons each, and each side was set with five blood-red jewels in a perfect semi circle. With both doors put together, it made a perfect circle of ten jewels that sparkled darkly in the little light that were was this deep into the castle. And in the center was a hand, a clenched fist made of gold, holding three silver lightning bolts. If the average bystander ever saw these doors, chances were that they would not know what the symbol meant. Wolverine knew, though, and had hoped that he would not be around if the symbols ever came to life. Now it seemed as if he would not get his wish.

Mystique gazed upon the doors for a few silent moments, looking at it almost lovingly, until she extended a hand and gently caressed the doors as if they were living creatures. With the same eerie silence, the doors began to open slowly, very slowly and very quietly, opening into a vast chamber beyond that could have swallowed the throne room easily. The room was circular too, the dark floors and round walls dark with no lamps or any other source of light to speak of. The only light there was came from the silvery illumination of the stars shining above. With a satisfied smile, the Queen stepped in, her two assassins following close by. They had rarely been inside the Ceremonial Tower before, so it must have been something of great importance.

There were golden symbols embedded all around the floor, set in circular patterns and symbols which held very little meaning to even Wolverine. Something told him that only the most experienced stargazers could make out what they meant. Towards the walls were symbols that particularly caught his attention, looking more like pictures or some type of sigil, and each one was different. There were ten of these symbols and set the exact same distance apart, again in a circle, all centered around the very center of the Tower. They were in the exact same positions as the jewels on the doors on the outside were. 

Above them, the ceiling rose the entire height of the palace, up towards the sky, where it stood open, roofless. The light of the stars were more than enough to give the three enough light to see by. Had the moon been out tonight, then it would have almost been as bright as day within the Ceremonial Tower.

In the center of the Tower was a hole that plunged straight into the ground, and looking as if it went on forever, the darkness of its depths a darker shade of black. It was large enough in diameter for Wolverine and Sabertooth to jump into at the same time and not crowd each other, and it would have taken a very large hole to allow them to do it. All of the golden inscriptions spiraled to the edge of the hole, swirling and looping in on themselves until they became so thin and complex that Wolverine got a headache if he looked at them for too long. 

The Queen stood at the edge of the hole, keeping her head high but still looking down into its depths. Then she did something that neither assassin had ever seen before. Very slowly, she began to chant below her breath in a tongue that neither understood. It was not more than a whisper, but it echoed in the chamber, growing louder and more intense, sounding like the voices of a hundred ghosts. Then she drew out the curved dagger that she kept in her belt, held up her other hand, and drew the blade across her skin in one smooth motion, cutting through the cloth of the glove and her skin alike as blood poured from between her fingers, dripping into the gaping hole before her. Sabertooth and Wolverine exchanged quick, confused glances at each other but did not say a word. The Queen knew what she was doing, apparently. It would have been a foolish move to interrupt her now.

The chanting hit a new level as the volume and the number of ghostly noises increased, the blood on Mystique's hand began to glow. Not only glow, but it stopped dripped. Or dripping _down_, at least. The drops of blood were now dripping _up_, above her hand, and condensing into a small orb a few inches above her hand, suspended in mid air, glowing the whole time. The Tower chamber soon became bathed in an uncanny red light that cast dark shadows on her assassins, which watched the whole spectacle in silent, questioning awe. 

Suddenly Mystique clasped her hand into a fist and dropped it at her side, the chanting still continuing and the glowing red orb of blood hanging suspended in the air, pulsing. Then with a sound that resembled breaking china, the orb hardened and became clear, looking exactly like the jewels in the doors. A small smile appeared on the Queen's face as she snatched the crystal, canceling out all its light except for where it illuminated her face from the space between her cupped hands, them tossed it into the well.

The well roared to life with the sound of thundered, spewing out a column of acrid, bright-green smoke that flashed sharply in Wolverine's eyes, blinding him, making him throw his hands in front of his face and stumble back a step. Blinking against the green light in his own head, he peered at what had come out of the well.

The column of green light looked like a giant, solid pillar that glowed brighter than a thousand torches, spinning slowly as flashes of yellow lightning raced up its entire length. It looked as if it extended beyond the opening of the tower. The Queen stood before it, her arms outstretched and looking very satisfied with her work, what ever it was. Even Sabertooth, a man of very little emotion besides anger and hatred, looked surprised. 

Mystique sighed, lowering his slender arms to her sides. "Ah…beautiful…simply exquisite…now, tell me. Where do I find the first Child of the Hearts of Heaven?"

A this ring of light flashed up the length of the pillar in the blink of an eye and before the Queen an image began to form in the slowly rotating column. It was smoky at first, almost hard to make out, but it soon took the form of a person, a young girl of about fifteen or sixteen years of age. She was a pretty girl with a slender, attractive face, her chestnut-brown hair drawn up into a pony tail at the top of her head. "Oh…" The Queen sounded surprised. "That is Harailt? No, it cannot be…" There was silence for a moment as Mystique listened to a voice that Wolverine nor Sabertooth could hear. "Ah…she is Aignéis…not the First, but the closest. Yes, I see now… Wolverine." Her voice was hard, the way it got before she gave an order. "Study the face of this girl well. She will be the first to be brought here."

"Her?" Wolverine asked as he looked back at the ghostly image of the girl. She was so young…he knew that the Children would be, but it was different now that he had seen her face. "But she…"

"So you dare question me, Wolverine?" Mystique's words were low, dangerous, dripping with venom. Wolverine swallowed, then stammered an apology quickly. "And I did not say _kill_ her. I want you to bring her to me. To have the Children dead would completely ruin any plans I have for them. They must stay alive until the Full Circle. Unless…" A cold sneer appeared on her full lips. "You feel as if you cannot deal with bringing back a little girl into my care?"

Wolverine clenched his jaw tightly. He hated being mocked, especially with Sabertooth standing so close by, but he still did not like the idea of fighting against a little girl, whether it was to kill her or not. Yet, if it would keep him in the Queen's favor and, even more sweetly satisfying, drive the thorn even deeper into Sabertooth's side that he had planted there originally…

Wolverine rolled his hand into a tight fist. The medal claws under his skin sprang to life, sliding out of his knuckles with a sharp hiss of medal.

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To be continued…

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	2. Aignéis Awoken

Chapter Two: Aignéis Awoken

**Chapter Two: Aignéis Awoken**

Kitty awoke at the sound of the cock's crow the early in the morning. She groaned and rolled over in her straw-mattress bed, trying to ignore the sound so she could sleep just a little while longer, but she knew it was futile. Within moments her mother would be bursting through the door telling her of what a nice day it was and how she was not going to waste it lying in bed. Kitty could immediately pick out two things wrong with that sentence alone. For one thing, it was not a nice day; she could feel it already. It was going to be a damp, dank, gray and cloudy day with a very good chance of rain. And second of all, she would be able to waste it all in bed, even if she wanted too. There was too much to do around the house, chores and the like; Kitty knew that she would be on her feet from the moment she got out of bed until she was allowed to sleep for the night. But so was the life of living on a farm. Deciding to save her mother the time, she rolled off of her mattress.

She was right, as could see as she looked out her window. A storm had moved in during the night, just as her father said it would, staining the sky a murky shade of gray that did nothing to improve her mood. With a sigh, she walked over to her chest that held all of her clothing and after rummaging around in it some, pulled out a pair of brown breeches, cream blouse and a forest-green vest to wear over it. If it was going to rain again today, then it would be pointless and downright dumb to wear a dress. All it would do it absorb all the water on the farm with its hems and make it twice as hard and take twice the time to finish all of her work. And, because of the rain, there was guaranteed to be a lot.

When she was fully dressed, Kitty made her usual attempt to pull her chestnut-brown hair back into its tradition pony-tail as she tried to open the door to her room at the same time. She had gone through the same routine for years on end, a never-ending cycle, but there was…something different this morning, she could feel it, as sure as she was when she felt the storm moving in the night before. For some reason she was having a hard time locating the doorknob. It felt awkward for Kitty when, for the first time in years, broke the daily ritual to let her hair full back onto her shoulders, ponytail-less, so she could see exactly where the doorknob was. Not surprisingly, it was right where it should have been. Maybe she was just tired. She never did sleep real well when there was a storm moving in. But still…it was strange. Frowning, she let her hair stay where it was as she reached for the doorknob, gave it a twist and pushed the door open to the rest of the house.

The home that Kitty and her family lived in was like any other; a two-storied farmhouse, excluding the fruit cellar and attic, capable of housing seven comfortably. That would include her mother and father, grandfather, sister, two brothers and finally Kitty herself, the youngest of the family. The bedroom that she shared with her sister was on the second story, right next to her brother's bedroom. Well, soon to be her one brother, anyway; Jeremy was getting married in a mere matter of months, and then he would move out into the house that he was building personally for him and his fiancée, to whom Kitty was still feeling indifferent to. It was a little hard to warm up to someone that constantly treated you like a child. Her mother and father slept downstairs in the master bedroom downstairs and their elderly grandfather in one of the house's smaller rooms near the back door.

Besides a missed doorknob, it seemed more and more lately that everything was breaking the comfortable rituals that Kitty had grown accustomed to. It also looked as if Christopher, her second oldest brother, was looking at becoming a husband as well. He and his lover had been together for about three years, and for most people that was more than enough evidence of commitment. And then there was Sarah…As much as she might love her brothers and sister, Kitty felt as if she was the black sheep of the family. It seemed anymore that the room that Kitty had once shared with Sarah was now more of her own, since Sarah was never home these days. And the reason? She was in town, flirting and conversing with all of the handsome sons of merchants and shop owners. Unlike Kitty, Sarah was a tall yet still buxom young woman with curly blonde hair that made her almost irresistible to the young and (ironically, Kitty would think bitterly to herself) wealthy of the town. 

But Sarah was not the only attractive one of the children. Both Jeremy and Christopher were handsome young men, Jeremy with his shining black locks, like their dad, and Christopher had their mother's gild-spun curled hair, as did Sarah. Her brothers were also tall and had very muscular builds that made women swoon over them where ever they went. All three of Kitty's older siblings had to beat back their suitors with a sick, but no one said that they did not enjoy every moment of it. Kitty was surprised that any of them had decided to settle at all. Well, maybe no so much as Sarah. She was still relishing in the life and luxury of being the most popular bachelorette in the town, and she milked it for everything that it was worth. There were so many fine and expensive gifts piled in the attic that Kitty was afraid that the roof would one day cave in on them.

Kitty, in other words, sometimes felt as if she got short-changed on her brothers and sister's fortunate good looks. She was not unattractive, that was for sure, but she had none of her sibling's radiance. All in all, Kitty was rather – to put it bluntly – plain. Her chestnut-colored hair was at times unusually straight and boring, which seemed to be emphasized when she pulled it back into her traditional high ponytail. She was the shortest of the family, which sometimes really grated on her nerves, and had a very small and modest build, even for being fifteen years old. The only thing that was not plain about her compared to her older brothers and sister was her eyes; while theirs were dark brown, all three of them, Kitty's were a breathtaking blue-green, so it was something nice to run into their faces every now and again.

Exactly where Kitty got her looks from, she was not sure. She thought this to herself every morning when she passed the silver mirror that was set right before the staircase that lead to the lower level of the old wooden house. Not only did she look anything like her siblings, but she also looked nothing like her parents as well. This morning they were all already downstairs and situated around the round kitchen table. Kitty found herself as fortunate to wake up when she did. If not, then chances were that she would have tipped off her mother on a sour note that morning. Her mother, like everyone else in the family, was tall, even by a woman's standard, slightly plump but nonetheless a very attractive woman, even with the wrinkles that touched at the corners of her eyes and mouth and the slight white hue to her sunny hair. He father was the tallest of the family, a sender man but all the years of hard work showing clearly, although his jet-black hair was already streaked with gray. Both of her parents were hard-working and honest people and Kitty loved them with all her heart, but she sometimes felt as if she was not meeting their expectations.

She shuddered at the thought. The expectations of a farm girl. To be married off to a well-to-do man as soon as possible, usually at the age of sixteen. Kitty was now fifteen, and her birthday was nearing soon. When Aignéis rose from over the horizon, within three-quarters of a years' time. As soon as that happened, her parents would immediately try to match her up with the first approved suitor. Damn the life of a woman.

This morning, Kitty was feeling even less like her usual good-natured self. Perhaps it was the weather to blame, or the reflecting on her sister's superiority over herself, or the thought of being married off to some stranger to become a child-bearer and housewife until she died. What ever it was, seeing Sarah absent from the table did nothing to improve it. Kitty sat down at the round table, in between Christopher and her grandfather, and said without her standard "good morning," "Where's Sarah?"

"At a friend's house in town." Jeremy said around a mouthful of eggs. Kitty rolled her eyes. Great. That meant that she had to do both her chores _and_ Sarah's today, in the rain. But, then again, even if Sarah _had_ been here, she would have been stuck doing both anyway. It seemed that the more popular she became around town, the less her parents wanted her doing any work that might strain her "fragile beauty," and Sarah agreed to it as being a good idea. Kitty had told her outright that it was the lamest excuse for an excuse that she ever heard.

"What's wrong with you this morning?" Christopher asked, taking notice of his youngest sister's tone of voice. "It sounds like you got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." He did not even wait for an answer as he began to wolf down the eggs and sausage that his mother put on his plate. It seemed like the speed at which her brothers ate their meals anymore was increasing each day, but it was no mystery to why they were doing it. It was so they could get done with their chores and see their sweethearts all the sooner.

Kitty shook her head in response to her brother's question. "You're not sick, are you, dear?" Her mother asked as she set the frying pan down and crossing the dining room to her daughter, placing a hand on her head. "You know I keep telling you to not leave the window open when you go to bed, or you'll catch your death. If Sarah was here, she would make sure that it would have stayed closed…"

"I'm not sick, mother." Kitty said, pulling away from her mother's hand and grabbing for an apple. Mostly she did not want to talk about Sarah at that moment. It would only put her in a worse mood than she already was. Taking a bite into the apple and walked over to the back door, well aware of the eyes of her family watching her every move, but she ignored it as she took off her heavy rain cloak and put it around her shoulders.

"Kitty, where are you going?" Her father asked from over his normal morning cup of tea.

"Out to do the chores, where else?" Kitty called over her shoulder. "No sense in waiting. I mean, the rain can only get worse once it begins."

"Oh…all right, dear." Her mother began. For a moment it seemed as if she was done speaking and was going to let Kitty do what she was about to, but Kitty knew her mother than that. "But…Kitty…do you insist on wearing…well…those?" Kitty turned away from them to hide the roll of her eyes. Right on time, her mother had to find something about her to criticize. Today, she had homed in on the breeches Kitty was wearing. "I mean, they can just be so…un-lady-like. A dress won't kill you, dear…"

"Oh, come on, Elizabeth, let the girl go." Kitty's grandfather said, speaking for the first time since Kitty got down to the table. "Your mother and I never criticized you on what you wore, so you shouldn't do the same to Kitty."

"Well…Dad, it's just I…" It was no use. Kitty's mom was at a complete loss of words. "Well, I guess she has a good reason for it. God ahead dear, but be careful out there. The ground's very muddy."

"Yes, mother." Kitty said obediently. Once again, she knew her own mother better than she thought. Under her breath, Kitty could nearly hear her say something about the thought of wearing pants over a dress would have never entered Sarah's mind. The mere thought made her angry, whether she had heard it or not. 

"Kitty, come here before you leave. Give your old granpa a hug before you go out into the cold." Her grandfather beckoned to her, and Kitty obeyed immediately. He pulled her into his wiry embrace and peaked a quick kiss on her cheek. Then he pressed something into her hand and when Kitty risked a quick glance down she saw that it was a pink and white peppermint stick. "Save that for later. Don't let them get to you so much. At least you don't have to win the approval for others by worrying about how good your hair looks." Despite her sour mood, Kitty nodded and a smile appeared on her lips. 

Good old grandfather. The only one who was the first to pick up on her bad moods and was always the first to make an effort to cheer her up, usually by giving her treats from his own personal stash that he kept under his bed. Even though she was not a child anymore, the occasional peppermint stick of lemon drop always did a bit to improve her mood. And it was nice to know that out of his four grandchildren, it always seemed as if he treasured her the most out of all of them. Good, sweet grandfather, with his snowy white hair, weathered face and thin, bony frame, sometimes seemed to be the only person on the whole farm that seemed to understand her. Kitty pocketed the candy stick and left the house, her spirits slightly lifted from their earlier glum mood.

It seemed to be just her lick that the first few drops of a soft sprinkle began to fall as soon as she stepped off the back porch and headed for the barn. The large, dark red structure loomed against the dark clouds, cold, wet and alone. The ground had been churned to thick, black mud from last night's rain, making it particularly hard to walk to the barn without effort. Audie, the family's sheepdog, lifted her shaggy head when she saw Kitty emerge from the house and was at her heels almost immediately. Like her grandfather, Audie seemed to favor her youngest master over all of the other children. Perhaps it was because that when Audie was a puppy, Kitty was also a child and spent most of her time playing with the dog in her free time while everyone else was at work. Well, everyone but Sarah, but Kitty's older sister, who never seemed to take a liking to the dog. Kitty scratched the sheepdog affectionately behind the ears as she walked, pulling her hood up as the cold raindrops splashed onto her face. She took note of how wet Audie was and felt bad that she had to stay outside all night in the rain. As much as Kitty desired to bring her into the house, thought, she knew of the fit her mother would have and decided that it would have been better for the both of them that she did not risk it.

Straining against the rust that had collected that had collected on the hinges of the heavy bar doors, Kitty grit her teeth as she was able to pull them open just enough for her to squeeze in, Audie not too far behind. The bar was still dark and colder inside than it was outside, with weak gray light filtering in through the cracks in the wall and the windows near the peak of the high roof. At one of the far corners, the horses pawed at the ground with the sudden disturbance of the silence, and the cows rattled their brass bells. In the rafters above, Kitty could hear the pidgins take flight among the eves. Being in the barn alone, especially when it was dark, always gave Kitty the creeps so she begin to sought out the oil lantern that hung from the hook near the door right away. She only stopped once when Audie took the opportunity of a dry place to shake the water from her long, shaggy fur.

"Oh, Audie." Kitty said as she shielded herself from the flying water. Normally, she would not have minded the dog's harmless actions, but right now she was making an effort to stay as dry as possible, even though she well knew that in a day like this it would have been impossible. "Thanks, girl. I really didn't need that…" Audie, sensing that she had done something to upset her master, pushed her cold wet nose into Kitty's hand and received another loving scratch behind the ears as a motion of forgiveness. After some groping Kitty found the lantern, struck a match from a small stash they kept hanging on the wall next to it, and soon a warm, golden light flooded the majority of the barn, leaving the rest to still sulk in inky black shadows.

The horses and cows blinked at her through the, what must have been for them, blinding light after the darkness of the storm, shifting in their stalls. Tall bales of hey were stacked all along the walls along with the various supplies of farming tools, and even more yellow straw was piled onto the hayloft a story above Kitty's head. A yellow cat that she had simply called Scratch was asleep on one of those bales. It opened one of its bright green eyes when she had lit the lantern but it did nothing but yawn, showing its long, ivory-colored canines before falling asleep again. The only reason why they kept the cat around was because it kept the numbers of mice in the bar under control and out of a barley. Sarah was allergic to cats, which was why Kitty was never allowed to have on of her own.

Kitty went about her chores within the barn quickly, trying to keep her mind off of her issues with her family, but anything else there was to think about was not any better. Every now and then she would think about her future and how her life of freedom, even as limitless as it seemed sometimes, was coming to a quick close. When Aignéis rose, then she would officially be an adult woman and, like all other adult women, would be married off as soon as possible. _A disgusting life_, she thought bitterly to herself when she threw some hay over to a few of the family's milk cows. _Women might as well have all been sows._

Kitty knew what it was she wanted, but it was an impossible. More than impossible; it was completely absurd. What Kitty wanted to do with her life was _live._ She wanted to travel the land, meet new people, experience and interact with the world, as women usually did not do, unless they happened to be married to a merchant. Once again, that was not what Kitty wanted. She did not want to be married to anyone. Well, not now, anyway. Not right away, not when she would have finally been old enough to finally travel on her own. With a sad sigh, Kitty stroked the muzzle of her beloved Palomino horse, Tabby, before placing pitchfork back onto its hanger and walking back to the front door of the barn. She blew out the lantern and replaced it, but did not feel quite ready to go back into the house yet. With another sigh, Kitty leaned back against the wall.

She leaned back

And back.

And back.

She did not realize that she was falling backwards until she landed with a bump on the other side of the barn wall.

For a few moments, Kitty could recall any logical thought process that may have passed through her head. One moment, she was leaning against the wall of the family barn, and the next moment, she was on the outside without walking through the door. Not only outside, but on the ground, the water soaking through her clothing, mud splattering her body and cold rain dripping down the back of her neck, but she did not mind to any of them. It was as if she had leaned back against something only to have it not there.

Had she…fallen through the wall?

No, that was impossible. She could not have fallen through the wall unless she merely passed right through it. Maybe…she had leaned back against the door? But it was a stupid excuse. The door was a full three feet to her right, and Kitty had fallen straight back. An icy cold feeling washed over her body. There was no logical explanation for it. 

Shaking all over from head to foot from nerves and from the cold, Kitty rose to her feet and took a few quaking steps towards the wall of the barn. The wood was whole, unbroken. Taking a deep breath, Kitty reached out and touched the wood. It sure felt solid. She began to run her hands along the wall, not worrying about splinters, looking for loose boards that may have given away when she leaned back. There was none to be found. Kitty frowned, trying to remember what had happened right before she fell, but it had happened so fast that she could not really recall anything. Then a new memory did come to mind. A feeling…a feeling that washed over her body and spirit right before she fell. It was a feeling of…nothingness. It felt like the situation that she got right before she fell asleep at night after a hard day's amount of work, but was still awake enough to be aware of everything that was happening around her. It had always felt as if she was floating on a sea of nothingness, so quiet, so peaceful…

Then she remember as well. She had felt the exact same thing when she missed her grab at the doorknob in her room that morning.

Focusing on that feeling, she closed her eyes and reached out a trembling hand to the wall of the barn. She reached out, extended her arm further and further, but was not touching anything, and she was certainly standing close enough to touch it at one time. The feeling of nothingness had consumed her entire arm, slowly creeping its way up her shoulder and to her mind, making her feel peaceful, but Kitty forced her eyes open and gasped at what she saw.

Her arm had completely disappeared into the wood. She was…reaching through the wall of the barn. Her heart pounding and her mind racing, Kitty withdrew her arm and clasped it to her, the nothing feeling vanishing as her arm become hole when she pulled it back. 

__

I must be dreaming. She thought to herself, massaging her hand. _That couldn't have been real. I did _not_ just put my hand through the wall; it's impossible! Isn't it…?_

Once again Kitty reached out but this time not thinking about the sensation, and when her fingertips made contact, they hit solid wood. Narrowing her eyes, Kitty then focused on the sensation of nothing, the mere thought of being able to pass through a solid object, and her hand slid into the wood and to the other side of the barn as easily as if she had put it into water.

A smile appeared on her face and Kitty forgot all other events of that morning. Taking a deep breath and still focusing on what she was doing, Kitty began to walk forward, watching in fascination as her arm passed through the wall further and further, until she herself passed through the wall. Kitty found herself standing on the other side of the wall, inside the barn, without the aid of using the door. Her smile grew wider and she turned around, focusing her attention, and ran back out, passing through the wall as if it had never been there in the first place. 

This was incredible! She felt so light, so free…it felt so good! But her good mood vanished like smoke when she saw her grandfather standing outside, standing in the cold rain without a parasol or his raincloak, looking very pale and forlorned. There was no denying it or bothering to hide it; he had seen her pass through the wall. "Gr...Grandfather!" Kitty stammered, thinking of a good way to explain what she had just done but drawing blanks all around. "I…I mean, that is…I didn't mean…"

Her grandfather only held up her hands, signaling for her to be quiet as he came closer to her. "It's all right , Kitty. You don't have to explain yourself." He draped a bony arm around her shoulder and began to draw her towards the house. "Oh my dear child, I was hoping that this day would not come so soon. Do not fear, we will explain all this to you."

"What's wrong, Grandfather?" Kitty asked, feeling an overwhelming amount of panic growing in her stomach. "What's happened? You're…I'm scared, what's wrong?"

The old man shushed his granddaughter, her arm tightening around her shoulders. "Don't worry, honey. There's a man inside who will explain everything to you. Just be calm, and nothing bad will happen."

__

Nothing bad? Kitty though as panic began to seep into her mind. _What does he…_

By then they were both inside the house, walking soaking wet into the dining room, where the rest of her family was. Kitty's heart sunk when she saw that all of them wore the exact same expression on their faces as her grandfather did, including Sarah, who must have returned home just a little while ago. But she was not the only new face in the room.

There was a man sitting at the table, his riding clock still wrapped around him tightly, and big enough to snap her father in half with no effort. He looked at her from under the deep, dripping hood with a grim face that looked as if it had been carved from solid stone.

"Aignéis." He said gruffly when his hard eyes fell upon her. "At last we meet."

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To be continued…

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A/N: Sorry it was so short, guys, but I wanted to get the next part up soon. It will get better in the next chapter, I promise! ^.~


	3. Like the Slipping Sands of the Hourglass

Chapter Three: Like the Slipping Sands of the Hourglass ****

Chapter Three: Like the Slipping Sands of the Hourglass

"A…Aignéis?" Kitty repeated shakily, not taking her eyes off of the big man but definitely backing up a few feet. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, my name's Kitty, not Aignéis. That's the star I was born under, not my name." Behind her, Kitty heard her mother let out a small, sobbing cry. She turned around to look at her. "Mom…?"

Tears shimmered in her mother's eyes as she clutched and tissue to her face. "Oh, Kitty…I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…we were going to tell you, but we had no idea that the Rising would be happening so soon…" Her sentence was choked off as the tears spilled down her cheeks. Her husband patted her on the shoulder. He was looking around as sorrowful as his wife did. Even Kitty's brothers and sisters looked as if they knew something that she did not know. Her grandfather had his back turned towards the lot of them, leaning against the doorframe and shaking his head slowly. Kitty began to feel panic seep its way into her mind, making her shiver.

"Can someone please explain to me what is going on?" Her mother only cried harder. "First of all, who are you, why are you here, and what do you have to tell me?" She demanded of the big man, swallowing her fear of him.

The man rose to his feet and Kitty realized how big he really was; all of her anxiety came back in a rush. He was almost head and shoulders taller than her father and at least twice as wide. Even through his thick traveler's cloak she could see the thickly roped muscles of his arms and legs. "I have not come here to tell you that." He said coldly. "I have come here to take you to Queen Mystique. She has requested your presence."

"Qu-Queen Mystique?" Kitty stammered, terrified. "What does she want with me? I…I won't go!" All the stories that Kitty's mother had told her children when they were young came flooding back in a rush. Although the land that Kitty's family had lived this land for years for generations, there had never really been any true ruler; no king, no queen, no definite monarch of any sort. And then, one day out of the blue when her parents had been children, Queen Mystique showed up and occupied the abandoned castle that had been built hundreds of years ago in the heart of the Deadcliff Mountains. No one knew for certain if she was a Queen before she arrived, that she merely bestowed the title upon herself, but no one questioned her decision. Almost immediately she formed a small army whose troops would patrol the lands, looking for anyone who stirred up any sort of suspicious trouble to drag them back to the palace by the roots of their hair. It was fabled that anyone who disappeared into the massive stone edifice were never seen again.

"You do not have a choice, Aignéis. I have been sent by the Queen herself to retrieve you. Now come along and there won't be any trouble." The man took a step forward. Kitty stepped two back. She bared her teeth defiantly.

"Who says I don't have a choice?" She hissed. Even though her mask of unyielding anger held strong, she could not deny that she was still backing away, now grabbing onto the back of a chair for support. "What if I don't want to go?"

"You have no choice." The big man said again, continuing his advance on her. Kitty was now pressed up against the kitchen wall, temporarily forgetting about her newfound powers. Her courage was failing her, and fast. Her mind slowly began to reel with fear; not from the man, but in fear of being brought before the Queen.

"Kitty, please…" Her mother begged. Tears streaked her pale face. It was then that Kitty realized that not one of them had made a move to defend her. "Just go with the man. Don't make this any more difficult than it already is…"

Kitty whirled to face her mother, not believing her ears. "Mother! How could you! You mean that you're just going to…"

"We're wasting time. Come, Aignéis. We must go now." It was not until he was within reaching distance of her that Kitty realized how close the man was. Her mind snapped back to a state of reality and screamed at her to run, and without a second's hesitation, she obeyed. Before the man had a chance to respond, Kitty dashed out of his range and bolted across the kitchen, heading for the back door. Despite the fear that was racing in her mind, the memory of her newfound powers was sparked again in her mind. She reached through the cloud of panic and sought for the feeling of nothingness, the feeling she had when she passed through the walls of the barn. The cold, refreshing feeling washed over her just in time as she vanished through the wall of the farmhouse.

"You won't escape me that easily, Aignéis." The man growled. He clenched his calloused hand into a fist and with the sound of medal sliding against medal, the metallic claws came unsheathed of his knuckles. Not even the screaming pleads of Kitty's mother nor the desperate attempts of her brothers trying to rush him could stop him from running out the back kitchen door in persuit of the terrified girl.

The rain and wind hit Kitty in the face like a cold slap as she passed through the wall of her home as easily as if it was not there, out into the farmyard beyond. The sudden appearance of her scared Audie from where she was sleeping in near the door. Once Kitty's feet were planted firmly on the ground, slick and cold with mud, she ran. She did not know where to, did not _care_; all she knew was that she had to get away. Her feet slapped against the ground, soaking the hems of her pants and the cold rain plastered her hair to her head, the cold air making her throat and lungs burned, but she did not care. She had to get away, away from the house, from her family, from the man. If she stayed, then she would have found herself eventually face-to-face with Queen Mystique. Gods, the _Queen!_

Over my dead body. Kitty thought fiercely as she continued to run. She soon found herself heading to the one place that stood in her path; the barn. A part of her told her that that was a foolish move. It would be the first place that man would look for her, but Kitty knew of hiding places that even her own brothers could not find. It was worth a shot. She was not going to go down without a fight. Not even bothering to stop to catch her breath, Kitty ran straight towards the barn, embraced the nothingness, and passed through the rough wall to the inside of the old edifice.

The barn was still dark, still smelt of stale straw. All of these features seemed to become more prominent in Kitty's exhaustion, but she wasted little time in catching her breath. She looked about quickly, thinking of the best possible place to hide so the man could not find her. If he could not see her outside, then the barn would be the first place that he would look. She had to think, fast. A thought flashed through her mind; there was a space in the wall between the shelves that they used to place the saddles and saddle blankets for the horses, near one of the very furthest walls and corners of the barn. The space was so small that Kitty knew that she was the only one who knew about it since she was probably the only one who could ever had fit into it. With all the shadows that surrounded the rack, even on a sunny day, it was sometimes hard to spot the crawlspace. Kitty forgot how she found it, herself, but that did not matter. 

She dashed across the length of the barn, startling the cows and horses, running over to the saddle rack. Was she too big to fit into the space? It was looking awfully small. She had not been back here for years; she may have been too big to fit. But this was no time to dwell on it; time was running out. Taking a deep breath, she pressed her back against the wall and eased herself into the space between the shelf and the wall. For a moment it looked like she was not going to fit, but when she exhaled her body fell through the tight space and into sanctuary. She drew her legs in after her. Now she was completely in the day. It was terribly cramped inside there and very hard to breathe, but maybe that was a good thing, as it would ensure her silence. She held her breath, only breathing when she dared to, and closed her eyes, remaining silent and waiting.

For what seemed like hours, there was nothing to be heard. Nothing moved in the dark, empty space of the barn except for the snorts and pawing of the horses and the cows rattling their large brass bells. Kitty wondered with a spark of hope that maybe he had given up, but she knew that that would not happen. She had never seen a man like him before, but she knew that he was the type that would not give up easily. The only other sound that broke the silence was the sound of the rain pounding on the roof of the barn and fat drops of water leaking in through the holes of the wooden roof that was in bad need of repair. Then…

The heavy wooden doors of the barn opened with a forceful bang. The horses whinnied and the cows mooed in shocked surprise, the pidgins that resided in the rafters took wing with sharp clapping noises and Kitty's blood ran cold. Cold air swept into the barn, but she did not notice. She only curled herself up into a tighter ball, shivering, waiting, and praying that he would not find her.

Heavy bootsteps crunched on the ground as the big man made his way into the barn, searching. She could tell by the slow and steady pace of his footfalls. The shivering became stronger and what little power Kitty had to try to subdue it failed. It felt as if even blinking would give her away. The footsteps became louder as the man got closer. Closer, and closer still. It felt as if he was almost right on top of her. Kitty squeezed her eyes together until they hurt. Then they halted. Kitty waited. Had he given up? He had to be at her end of the barn by now. Silence once again reined supreme. Then Kitty heard a sniffing sound, as if he was smelling the air for something.

The shelves that had her pressed against the wall was wrenched away violently, exposing Kitty's hiding spot. Somehow the man had found her, but it did not matter how now. The only thing that mattered was that he had found her, that her one attempt at trying to save herself had failed. Kitty jumped to her feet with a scream, shielding herself from the foot-long medal claws that were protruding from the man's hands at the knuckles. Her powers and all bits of courage were forgotten. She had made the man angry by denying him. Now he was going to kill her because of it.

"Please don't kill me!" Kitty pleaded, still trying to push herself back into the wall. She rarely let herself cry in front of strangers, but now tears had weald up in her eyes and were spilling down her face. "I…I'm sorry! Just don't kill me! Or take me to the Queen! She'll want to kill me too, I just know it!"

A sudden anguish grabbed hold of Wolverine's heart. He did not ever plan on killing the girl – it would have been his own head if he had – but the unsheathing of his claws reminded him of how close he was if he made the wrong move. When he had first seen the image of Aignéis in Mystique's spell, he did not like the idea of having to go after a little girl. It was only now that he realized how much he really despised it. He had no idea what the Queen wanted with these children, but he knew that it was nothing good. When she had in mind when the Full Circle was completed involved the black magic, he knew that much, and when innocent people were brought into issues with the vile stuff…he had seen results of it, and it was never anything good. He could not allow her to do that to these children. Sighing, he drew his claws back into his flesh.

"I'm not going to hurt you, kid." He said. Kitty looked at him through the crack in her arms, wondering if she should believe him. "Believe me, it's not my choice to bring you to the Queen, I was just ordered to."

Kitty sniffed, but slowly lowered her arms away from her face. "Wh-what does the Queen want with me?" She asked shakily.

"It might be better if you don't know. Believe me." He added harshly when he thought she would inquire further. "Well, this is a problem. Even if I don't bring you back to the castle, she will send someone else to, and this other guy won't be as lenient as I am."

Fear seeped back into Kitty's already deathly pale face. "Then…what should I do?"

Wolverine did not answer right he, but he thought quickly. No matter where he took her in this land, Mystique would find them regardless. There had to be somewhere that they would be safe from her claws, somewhere that she would not even dare to look…

The thought hit him like a lightning strike.

Xavier.

"Come on, kid." He said gruffly, motioning for her to follow. "I know where you can hide."

"Where?"

"In the realm of a sorcerer named Xavier."

Then he heard it, just as he knew he would. The low, baleful howling of the Deadcliff Wolves. "Come on kid, move. There isn't much time." This time he did grab Kitty's wrist and began to pull her out of the barn, back to her house.

"What? Why so soon?"

"The Queen won't wait for your return, nor my betrayal. We have to leave. Now. Go back into the house and pack only what you need. I'll get your horse saddled. Which one is it?"

"Th-the palomino." She answered shakily. It seemed hard to think, hard to respond since everything seemed to be reeling around her so badly. "Why? What's happening?"

"Don't you hear them?" Wolverine asked in a low voice. Kitty tried to control her heavy breathing and listened. Naturally, she did not heard anything, Wolverine knew this. They were too far away, but his keen senses knew exactly where the wretched creatures were, and that they were getting closer. If they stayed here, they would be at their throats within the hour. They had to move. "The Queen knows where I'm going to take you, and she's going to use all her power to try to stop us before we can get there. So I suggest you get moving before she has a chance to do that, Aignéis." Kitty did not say another word. She instead took off running for the house.

Forgetting about her powers again, Kitty threw herself at the kitchen door and opened it, letting it slam against the wall with a bang, startling her entire family that were still sitting in the kitchen. They all seemed surprised to see her again and all started talking at once, but Kitty did not waste any time. She did not know who these "they" the man spoke about, all she knew was that they were coming. And coming from the Queen, they certainly could not have been anything pleasant. She ran up the stairs at break-neck speed and into her room where she immediately grabbed a worn old leather traveling bag that was under her bed. Tearing open the drawers of her dresser, she began to throw in everything necessary that she needed for the journey, where ever it was, that is. Being so late in the year, it would be cold, so she at least stopped long enough to make sure that she wad taking one of her warmer cloaks. It was actually her grandmother's that fell into Kitty's possession when she passed away; it was made of tightly knitted wool that was waterproof and had a mink-fur trimming around the edges. Kitty had always loved it, and so it was given to her because Sarah felt as if it was too "underclass" for her standards. Nothing less than velvet would do for her thanks.

Kitty must have moved faster than she had thought, because by the time she was completely done packing her brothers had just run up the stairs and were at the door of the room that she shared with her sister. "Kitty!" Christopher gasped, obviously out of breath. "What are you doing? You had us all scared to…"

"Sorry Chris, no time to explain." She said hurriedly as she passed her way past them and headed back down the stairs, passing her father and grandfather and was about to bypass her mother if she had not grabbed onto her arm, making her stop and turned her so she was looking at her daughter face-to-face.

"Kitty! What is wrong?" Her mother demanded, tears still fresh in her eyes. "Please dear, I'm sorry! You don't have to go with him! We'll do everything we can!"

"There is nothing to worry about, ma'am." Said a deep voice from behind them. "No one will hurt her."

"How do we know?" Her mother snapped. "Please, you can't take her to the Queen! I know, I know we knew this was coming and had agreed to it, but you can't take her! I refuse to let her take her to that witch!"

"I'm not taking her to Mystique." Kitty could tell that the man's patience was wearing thin while he was trying to talk to the hysterical woman. "I am taking her to Xavier. He will keep her safe until the Full Circle is complete."

"And how do we know we can trust you?" Kitty's father asked, coming up behind his wife and daughter and encircling them with his strong arms as if trying to protect them from anything unexpected this man might try to do to them.

"By merely speaking Xavier's name, I have betrayed the Queen. Now she sees me as nothing but an enemy, as well as one of Xavier's men. Because of that, Aignéis is in even more danger than she was before. I must take her away from here before they come. She will be safe with him, and anyone who knows of Xavier's name must know of his reputation, correct?" Time was running out. The howls and screams of the Deadcliff Hounds were growing closer but the moments. They would be here in less than an hour. There was no more time to waste. As soon as he saw the briefest of nods from her parents he said gruffly, "Then we should go. Aignéis, come. We are running out of time." And he swept out of the room and out of the kitchen door, out into the driving rain.

As soon as he was out of sight both of Kitty's parents pulled her into a bone-crunching hug, taking all the wind from her lungs. "Forgive us, Kitty." Her mother whispered in a teary voice. "Never forget that we love you very much. You have always made us very proud."

"You will always be our little girl." Her father said, sounding as equally sorrowful as her mother.

Once her parents pulled away her brothers were not too far behind, and then finally her sister and her grandfather both said their farewells. Each goodbye became increasingly harder on Kitty. Her sudden departure was so unexpected that she did not yet feel the painful grip of sadness that one usually felt when they were leaving not even when she did not realize that she did not know how long she would be gone for. Would she ever see her family again? For as much as they drove her crazy sometimes, would she ever see them again? The sorrow began to creep into her heart but as soon as she saw the man's shadow over the doorway she remembered that they were on a tight schedule and pulled reluctantly away from her family. Throwing her cloak over her shoulders and trying hard not to look back, she headed out the back door.

By the time Kitty was outside, the man was already mounted on top of a huge black war horse, gripping the reins of Kitty's Palomino in one hand. Her saddlebag and a bedroll had already been strapped onto Tabby's saddle and the horse pawed at the ground irritably, apparently not happy that she had to stand out in the cold, driving rain. When the man's eyes fell on her she mounted quickly, gathering the reins in one hand and pulling the hood of her cloak tightly around her face with the other. 

Wolverine frowned as the howls of the Wolves rose and fell again. Time was slipping away like the sands of an hourglass. He spurred his war horse into a trot and took off towards the forest, mud and water splashing up around its hooves as it ran. "Aignéis!" He called over his shoulder. "Are you coming or will you just stand there like easy prey?"

Kitty looked back sadly at her house one more time before kicking Tabby in the flanks, making her catch up to the big man's horse with little difficulty. "You know, if we're going to be traveling together, then you might as well call me by my real name. It's Kitty, not Aignéis."

"Very well." The man grunted, easing his horse into an easy trot with Kitty not too far behind.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Aren't you going to tell me your name?"

The man sighed, looking as if she had just asked him something that he would rather not answer. For a moment she thought he was going to do just that, until… "Wolverine."

Kitty blinked. "That's your name? It sounds more like a codename to me. I mean, that's not the name you were born with, was it?"

Wolverine's face turned even more sour then before, looking as if he had just eaten something bad and it was taking a few minutes for it to register. "My name's Logan." He said finally.

"There." Kitty said with a smile. "That wasn't so hard now, was it?"

Wolverine looked down at the girl. For being as scared as she was just a short while ago, she certainly was in good humor. A small, awkward smile tugged at the corners of his lips, but if soon faded as he urged his horse faster at the howls of the Deadcliff Wolves drew ever nearer.

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To be continued…

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Sorry that took so long, guys. It will get better soon, I promise!


	4. Fleeting Night

****

Chapter Four: Fleeting Night

"Curse the man!" The Queen raged as she picked up the crystal observing sphere and threw it onto the cold stone tile of the throne room. The sharp, loud crack made Sabertooth wince in spite of himself as the crystal ball shattered into dust. "How _dare_ he betray me! And if it's not bad enough that he betrayed me, but he had to go over to _Xavier's_ side! Damn the man! Curse him!"

Sabertooth held his tongue, because he knew that if he did not, he would lose it. It was not wise to cross Queen Mystique when she was angry, and she was definitely not in the brightest of moods. In Saber-tooth's mind, though, he had seen this coming a long time ago. The man had always had a weak heart; why the Queen kept him around, he would never know. But even as much as he hated to admit it, Wolverine was a good fighter, and people with those skills seemed to be hard to come by these days. Even worse than the fact that Wolverine was a good fighter, Sabertooth grimaced at the fact that Wolverine was almost a better fighter than _he_ was. He certainly gave the man a run for his money, and Sabertooth took that in the worst possible way anyone could process a piece of information, and because of that had vowed himself that he would bring Wolverine down. He was well-aware that if the Queen ever tired of taking out her rage on the fragile crystals that she used to watch over the land, he would be their substitute, but having Wolverine out of the way was well worth it. "What does my Queen plan to do now?" Sabertooth's question was slow, careful.

The Queen glared at him, a look at could have shattered glass, but then, surprisingly, her face smoothed into cool composure. "Nothing." She said. That came a bit of a shock, and Sabertooth almost blinked in confusion and anger. The one chance he had to see Wolverine's blood spill, possibly by his own hands, but the Queen almost looked like that she did not want that. "I had a feeling that it would come down to this, but not so soon. That's why I summoned the Deadcliff Hounds after he left. Now that he has…betrayed me…" The word caused a shiver to run down Sabertooth's spine. "The Hounds are on his trail. They will kill him and return the girl to me. Once Aignéis is in my hands, you, Sabertooth, are to go out and collect the rest of the children for me."

At this, a cruel smile curled Sabertooth's mouth, baring his long, sharp fangs. She may be a Queen, but she was still sometimes a fool. She should have known better than to assume that the Deadcliff Hounds could finish off Wolverine. They were no match for the man, no matter how many there were. He would cut them down as if they were flies. And with their failure, Mystique would have no choice but to send him out to finish what the Wolves began. All he had to do now was wait.

"As my Queen commands."

* * *

They had made good time, but it was not good enough. The Deadcliff Hounds were still following them, and drawing closer all the time. Now dusk was falling, and they were still deep in the woods with no apparent place to stay for the night. And anyone who knew that Deadcliff Hounds knew that they were as good as dead during the night more than during the daylight.

"Don't you think we should stop for a while for the horses?" Kitty asked as she urged Tabby to walk harder behind Wolverine's black warhorse. "We've been pushing them for a long time. Maybe we should let them rest for just a few minutes."

"Not enough time." Wolverine said gruffly. "We have to keep moving, possibly through the night."

"Through the night?" Kitty repeated. "In the dark? Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, there are dangerous people on the roads at night…bandits and rapists. And then the wolves…" She was cut off shortly when a low moaning howl rose and fell on the twilight wind. For a moment Wolverine had to consider if the Deadcliff hounds were still far enough away that only he could still hear them, or if they were close enough now that he actually had to begin to worry. But when he saw Kitty tense out of the corner of his eye, he knew that it was now time to worry about them. "See what I mean?" She said in a hushed whisper, as if trying to make an attempt to hide themselves from the Wolves. Wolverine knew better, though.

"Those aren't wolves, Kitty." He said, motioning for his horse to move a little faster. "They are, however, the reason why we have to keep moving." The girl seemed to have no more objections. She too kicked her horse in the flanks to get it moving as well, almost moving faster than Wolverine was. "Not too fast there, kid." He said, trotting up beside her. "You don't want to draw any more attention to us then need be. Just keep close to me, stay alert, and do as I say. We're going to be all right."

Face pale and eyes wide, Kitty nodded and obeyed.

For a long time neither one of them spoke as they picked their way carefully along the trail. As they headed deeper into the forest the trail became thinner, more thickly grown over with shrubs and other low growing plants. Soon it became to narrow that, even though he did not like it, they had to move in single file, Kitty riding Tabby in front. All sounds seemed to be exaggerated in the still of the night. They seemed to be drawing those demonic howls closer and closer to them.

"Mister Logan, what…are those things?" Kitty asked in a near whisper, turning her head slightly over her shoulder to look at him. "They…don't sound like regular wolves."

"You couldn't be more right, Kitty. Those…are Deadcliff Wolves. Specially born and bred by Queen Mystique, and her most loyal killers."

Kitty's face turned even whiter at his words as her head snapped back around, her large blue-green eyes wide and wild. "You don't mean that she means to have them kill us, do you?" Her voice was only a hoarse whisper, but Tabby seemed to sense his master's distress when he danced a bit in mid-walk. Or maybe it was the howl of the wolves, or whatever they were. They could not be more than a few miles away.

"Yes, they do." Wolverine paused, considering his words. "Well, maybe not you, but certainly me. Mystique won't tolerate any betrayal, in all its shapes and forms, and I have betrayed her. You, though… they'll just bring you back to the queen, then she'll send out Sabertooth to collect the others."

"Sabertooth?" Kitty asked, her voice quivering a bit.

Wolverine waved a hand as if it was no big deal. "Another assassin that she's been keeping around for a while. Something tells me he'll be less gentle on those kids and the Wolves will." He paused, listening. The silence seemed to be pressing down all around them like a giant hand. Kitty twisted around in her saddle, wanting to watch all sides at once, as if those horrible creatures were to leap at them from the shadows in between the trees. "Let's keep going, at a walk, but be ready to run when I say, understand?"

Scared as she was, Kitty nodded without hesitation. The girl had a good head on her shoulders. Although she was obviously more terrified now than she had ever been that morning, the fear was not making her foolish. That was a rare trait in people. She turned Tabby back around, kicked his flanks, and continued to tread down the path, the hoof falls muffled by the thick debris of the forest. The canopy overhead was so think that it completely hid the sky from view, taking the light of the moon and the stars with it. The trees were growing closer to the path, sometimes making it so thin that she wondered how she could get her horse through. The branches were dipping lower into the path as well, often making her and Wolverine duck out of their way. That was going to be a real problem if they had to break into a run anytime soon…

It was then, Kitty noticed with a sinking, cold feeling in her stomach, that she realized that the howls of the Wolves had fallen silent some time ago. She knew very well what this meant; growing up so near the forest teeming with wolves taught her enough. When a pack of wolves would close in on their kill, they would fall completely silent, no matter how much noise they were making before, as to not let their prey know that they were close by…

"Kid." Wolverine's voice was so hushed that even in the silence, Kitty had to strain to listen. "When I give the signal, run. Straight ahead, following the path. There's a village only about two miles from here, and the Deadcliff Wolves hate the light. Run there, and wait for me. Get ready…"

Sweat poured down Kitty's face as she stared straight ahead, biting her lip so hard that she could have drawn blood. She was gripping the reins in so tightly that her knuckles were white and her fingers hurt, but she kept her legs relaxed so she could give a hard enough kick to Tabby for a quick start.

"Get ready…" Something rustled in the bushes to their right. "NOW!"

Without needing to be told twice, Kitty kicked Tabby hard in the flanks, making him spring into a gallop as something large and hairy snarled and launched itself from the thick undergrowth, missing Tabby's back legs by inches. The palomino screamed at the thing rounded on him, hideous jaws snapping, and Kitty kicked him harder, urging him to run as the Wolf's snarls turned into a strangled gurgle, and Kitty risked a quick glance behind her shoulders to see the three medals claws protruding through the Wolf's neck. Black blood bubbled from where the claws protruded from the flesh.

"RUN! NOW!" Wolverine shouted at her again as two more Deadcliff Wolves leapt from the forest, clawing and snapping at the legs of his war-horse, trying to de-saddle him, only to be cut back by the flashing claws. Kitty only got a brief glance at the creatures. They hardly looked like wolves at all. There definitely had a dog-like quality to them, but they also looked as if they had been crossbred with a huge mutant rat. Their fur was thick and coursed and knotted, their heads long and teeth bared and sharp. But their legs were anything dog-like. They were instead hairless and scaly with claws like a possum's, and their tails were like fat rat's tails. They were, undoubtedly, the ugliest things that Kitty had ever seen before in her life, but there was still no time to dwell on the thought. Leaning forward in Tabby's saddle, she urged her horse to run through the forest regardless of the trees or narrow path, pushing him harder. She only wished that there was something, _anything_ she could do to help Logan as she heard those things swarm around him.

The wolves only ignored her for those first few seconds that she got for a head start. The growling and snarling that was beginning to sound farther away was rising quickly again as the things gave chase. Kitty glanced behind her shoulder and saw half a dozen Deadcliff Wolves chasing her, snapping at the heels of her horse. She could no longer see Wolverine; the shadows of the forest had hidden from view, but the ring of medal cutting through flesh could still be heard. "Come on…" She urged her horse. "Faster…"

She already knew that those things were much faster than her horse, and there was little to do as they closed around her, leaping at her, ready to pull her off her saddle and drag her back to the Queen. Tabby screamed as the jumped closer, missing his heels by inches. _Please…_ Kitty prayed, closing her eyes and leaning forward on Tabby's neck. It was like she was living in some horrible nightmare that she could not wake up from. _Please, someone…anyone…help us get through this. Don't let them kill us…_

Then, as if answering her pleas, another cry rose out from the forest. _Oh no…not more Deadcliff Wolves…_ They were closing in around her from both sides. There was no escaping them. They were going to kill Wolverine and take her back to the Queen before they even stood a chance to get to the Sorcerer Xavier…

But there was something different about the howls of the wolves that were coming the in the direction. Their howls were not the demonic shrieks of the Deadcliff Wolves, but they were not ordinary wolves either. They sounded…musical, and Kitty felt as if she had swallowed a glass of warm honey, warming her in the inside, making her feel peaceful, safe. 

Something white flashed from in between the trees; a dozen large white shapes, making their way through the dense forest as if they were ghosts but not making a sound, their howls escalating. The nearest ghost leapt at them from between the trees, and Kitty gasped when she saw it was an enormous white wolf with two different eyes; one pale blue, the other deep gold. If the Deadcliff Wolves were big, they were nothing compared to these white wolves; they were nearly twice as big and twice as powerful. And they were beautiful, their fur slick and shiny like shinning silver. They dove at the Deadcliff Wolves from the forest, biting and snapping at their necks, stopping them from getting Kitty. They were helping her escape, but she did not dare stop to watch. She dug her heels into Tabby's flanks and sped onwards, thankful to who ever sent her the miracle.

Kitty's spirits sunk again as she saw something loom before her; something huge, black, and looking her solid. A huge boulder was blocking the path, and she knew at once that they were going too fast and were too close to it to slow down and avoid a crash collision. If there was only some way to get around, but it looked as if either side of the path was blocked…there was nowhere around…

__

Go through…

Kitty wondered if she was hearing things. It sounded as if someone told her to go _through_ the boulder…

But she understood almost immediately, and wondered why she had not thought of it sooner. Releasing her death-grip on Tabby's reins, she lifted herself in the saddle and leaned over her horse's neck, hand outstretched beyond his head. Would Tabby go through as well? It was a little late to worry about that. "I'm sorry, Tabby." She told her horse, and embraced the feeling of nothingness.

With a scream, Tabby jumped into the air merely feet away from the face of the boulder, Kitty waited for impact, to hear the horrible crunch of bone and flesh slamming into the rock at full speed…but nothing happened. She was still running, unhurt. She looked behind her, and saw the outline of the boulder fading into the shadows of the forest. Kitty felt like laughing. She had escaped the Deadcliff Wolves, and she had just put her newfound powers to a helpful use. For the time being, she knew that she was going to be all right.

__

Wolverine… A sudden sadness came over her. Did he escape the Wolves all right? Were those white wolves going to help him as well? His words echoed in her head.

"_Get to the village."_ For one last time, Kitty spurred Tabby and they continued to gallop down the dark forest path.

Something winked at her through the trees, which were not beginning to thin rapidly; a light. Several lights, shining at her through windows. It was the village. She had finally made it. She and Tabby burst through the last few trees, coming down and coming to an immediate stop in the middle of the town square, onto paved street. The small buildings of the town rose up all around her, warm and inviting. It never felt so good to be back in civilization. 

There was an inn directly across from where she stood, the sigh creaking in the wind. In the weak glow of the light in the windows below, she was just able to read "The Traveler's Retreat." It looked to be the only inn in the area, and probably the first place Wolverine would look for her if he did not see her in the square. She de-mounted from her horse, who was still breathing very hard, and led him over to the inn. There was a gruff-looking man waiting by the door, but asked her rather politely if she wanted her horse stabled.

"Oh…umm…yes, just for a little while. I'm supposed to be meeting someone here."

"Well, he looks a wee bit tired. Some water ought to do him good." He took the reins from Kitty and lead Tabby towards the stable. Kitty took off her traveler's bag, fished inside of it and found three copper coins. She gave them to the man, thanked him, and went inside the inn. It was warm and comforting on the inside, and very inviting. There were very few people in the common room, as late as it was; only a few late-night travelers such as herself, smoking pipes by the fire. 

"Room for the night, dear?" Came a voice from behind her. Kitty turned and saw a plump, kind looking man standing behind a bar, cleaning a glass with a cloth. 

"Oh, no…just waiting for someone. Is it all right if I stay here until he arrives?"

"Go right ahead." The innkeeper said kindly, smiling at her. Kitty smiled back and took a seat in front of the fire, away from the other men. She did not realize how cold it was outside until she sat before those crackling flames, feeling as if there was ice melting inside of her. Was Wolverine still alive, she wondered? Did he make it away from those wolves? There was no telling. He seemed to be a good fighter, especially with those claws of his, whatever they were. The only thing she could do was wait, but the mere though made her edgy. She had escaped the Deadcliff Wolves, Queen Mystique's own creations, that were supposed to bring her back to her. Surely the Queen would know in time, and send more.

Kitty shook her head, not wanting to think about it. The warmth of the fire was making her sleepy…she wanted to lay down right here, right now, on the woven hearthrug and sleep…

"'tis dark times, it is." She heard a man to her right saying. "To catch one so close to the village…" 

"Aye…every man has a right to worry when a demon runs astray so near his family." Kitty, being as curious as she was, roused herself to listen.

"But not a very dangerous one, is it?" Said another man, joining the conversation. "I mean, they got it tied up in a cage outside, don't they? Could escape any time it wanted."

"Prayith that never happens." Said the first man glumly. "I've seen a demon work before. I had nightmares for years."

__

A demon? And tied up outside?

Something told Kitty that she should not go see, but her curious side won her over. Slowly she sat up and made her way away from the fire, moving so slowly and without sound that none of the men or the innkeeper saw her go. Not wanting to draw attention, she made sure that no one was looking, embraced the nothingness, and slid silently through the door.

The village outside the inn was as dark as ever, but Kitty saw the cage almost immediately. It looked like a giant birdcage, suspended on an iron pole, hanging four feet from the ground. From where she was standing, Kitty could see that there was someone…or something…inside.

She made her way stealthily over to the cage, and as she approached a sign came into view, stationed a few feet away from the bars. _Warning: Mothers and children keep away. Demon caught from the very depths of Hell_. 

__

Oh, what nonsense. Kitty snorted, and pushed past it, still approaching the cage carefully.

The figure on the inside was unlike any demon she had ever red about. In fact, even in its dark silhouette, it looked like a young boy, no older than she, his legs drawn close to his chest and his arms wrapped around them, face buried against his knees. He certainly did not look dangerous. Kitty felt sorry for the boy…if he was a boy, that was. She took a deep breath, and said. "Hello. What's your name?"

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To Be Continued…

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End file.
